In the manufacture of industrial and food grade wax and similar substances, it is conventional practice to form the wax in generally rectangular slabs or blocks having a weight of about ten to twelve pounds, for example, whereby these slabs or blocks may be shipped to end-users of the wax such as manufacturers of milk and other food containers, candles, chewing gum and adhesives, for example. The wax slabs or blocks are typically formed in molds which are stacked in a side-by-side manner in a molding machine for receiving molten wax and whereby the wax slabs may be released from the molds after the wax has solidified and cooled to a temperature which will permit handling and shipping.
In order to improve the efficiency and speed of the molding process, wax molds are preferably cooled by a liquid coolant, including water or a mixture of water and other coolant fluids, such as ethylene glycol, for example. One problem associated with prior art liquid cooled wax molds pertains to the non-uniform cooling effect resulting in unacceptably long periods of time during which the wax slabs must be kept in the mold. The non-uniform cooling of the wax slabs also tends to produce distorted and non-uniform slab shapes and weights or, hardened wax sticking to the mold. Moreover, non-uniform heat transfer between the wax and the mold causes stresses to be imposed on the mold and boiling of the mold coolant, both often resulting in damage to the mold structure and leakage of coolant from the flow passages in the mold.
Still further, there has been a desire to provide wax molds which are constructed to facilitate easy cleaning and replacement of worn or damaged parts, when necessary, without replacing the entire mold structure itself. Solutions to the above-mentioned problems as well as the provision of certain desirable features have been achieved with an improved liquid-cooled wax mold in accordance with the invention.